


Like Blood in the Snow

by Takalot



Category: Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: Because Danganronpa is horribly sad, But I don’t want to confuse people so I use the English way, But if you don’t like you’re in the wrong fandom friend, Canon Rewrite, Chihiro Fujisaki Lives, Fix-It, Hello I am a friendly tag, I realize that in Japan they write the surname first, M/M, Multi, Owada Mondo Lives, Swearing because it’s Mondo, They/Them Pronouns for Fujisaki Chihiro, help I don’t know how to tag, no beta we die like men, some physical violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-12 20:29:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28641510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Takalot/pseuds/Takalot
Summary: What if Mondo hadn't snapped that fateful night in the gym? Both Mondo and Chihiro would still be alive. But what if Celestia and Yamada still try to kill Taka and Mondo finds out?*Not abandoned in the slightest- Apologies! I am terribly busy with schoolwork currently but I am still working on the next chapter and I’m hoping to post it as soon as I am able to! I am also working on updating the previous chapters a bit, mostly adding context and whatnot, so look forward to that as well!!*
Relationships: Asahina Aoi & Ishimaru Kiyotaka, Asahina Aoi & Oowada Mondo, Asahina Aoi/Ogami Sakura, Fujisaki Chihiro & Ishimaru Kiyotaka, Fujisaki Chihiro & Owada Mondo, Ishimaru Kiyotaka & Ogami Sakura, Ishimaru Kiyotaka & Oowada Mondo, Ishimaru Kiyotaka/Oowada Mondo, Naegi Makoto & Everyone, Ogami Sakura & Oowada Mondo
Comments: 33
Kudos: 108





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello dear reader! So this drabble literally came to me from just the phrase 'Like Blood in the Snow' because I was thinking about Taka's white uniform and, well, you know what his cannon fate was >^< So I wrote this instead because NO! I WILL NOT GO DOWN WITH THE SHIP, YOU CAN'T MAKE ME >0< They will be happy!!! .....Ah-hem 0.0 Annnyways, I hope you enjoy!! This is only the first chapter and I'll likely be coming out with new chapters pretty quickly. I estimate all together it might be three to four chapters?? I'm not sure but that's my best guess ^^  
> Happy reading lovelies!! You're ✨a-maaazing ✨ !
> 
> «───────«·\𖥸/·»───────»
> 
> Additional Notes
> 
> Ishida does not exist in this universe since Ishida was caused by Taka being unable to cope with the grief of losing Mondo, his grief literally so immense that he suffered a mental breakdown and his subconscious was forced to create an alter personality in order to survive. Considering Mondo is alive and well though, Taka is still Taka ^^  
> ↯  
> Considering I needed the Physics lab which is on the third floor, a floor that only unlocks once - aCk >^< \- once Mondo and Chihiro are gone >^<, I've changed the plot to be that Monokuma was getting bored that no more killings had happened so he opened the next floor out of boredom as well as hoping it would prompt something. Which, it technically did considering what this fanfic will be about.  
> 

  
  


It was early, earlier than he usually woke up without Taka being the cause of it. He honestly wasn't even sure why he was awake. Maybe his bro was rubbing off on him. Snickering at the thought, Mondo continued to leisurely wander down one of the many halls of their prison. He had had some time before Taka usually showed up at his door to wake him up for the breakfast meeting and, after some debating over whether or not he should just go back to sleep or not, he decided he'd instead look around the storage room for a bit. He didn't know what he'd find in there but he'd been meaning to check it out. 

Still though, he'd have to keep an eye on the time. He didn't want to miss when Taka stopped by his room for the morning and he definitely didn't want to accidentally miss his Kyoudai's breakfast meeting. Taka would have his ear not to mention it'd likely worry him half to death considering he usually would panic when someone was late, assuming the worst. Plus, he knew how important these meetings were to him, offering some sort of stability and familiarity while they were surrounded by danger and a possible death around every corner.

It was commendable that his Kyoudai had managed to bring together everyone, even if it was just for a brief moment in the morning and he was so fucking proud of his bro. Somehow he managed to stay so damn optimistic even in a situation like this, the biker thought while shaking his head in fond amusement.

Mondo's thoughts shifted back to the storage room, shoving a hand into one of the deep pockets of his coat and pulling out his handbook. Fiddling with it for a moment, he brought up the map and he was relieved that he was almost there. Shoving his handbook back into his pocket roughly, Mondo gave an annoyed huff. Damn this school was big, even with areas blocked off. This storage room better be worth it. Hopefully he could rummage up a videogame or something at least remotely fun; it was boring as hell being trapped in here without his motorcycle and no tv or games. Hell, he'd even be happy if he found some school textbooks to give to Kyoudai. The raven had been progressively getting more and more antsy as time went on without anything to study from, the fear of falling behind ever present in the prefect's mind. Imagining how happy and excited Taka would be if he did manage to find something made him smile as he neared the storage room, but his smile quickly vanished when his ears suddenly picked up a faint shout.

It took him just a moment to realize the voice was coming from ahead of him, assumedly from the storage room if the direction was anything to go by. Mondo broke into a quick jog before it turned into a full out run when he recognized the voice as Chihiro's, although it sounded off for some reason. Bursting through the doors into the dark room, he quickly looked around for the small programmer but there was no one in sight. 

"Huh..." He scratched the back of his head as he came to a stop in the middle of the large room, still looking around in confusion. He could have sworn he heard-

"Hello! Is someone there?!"

Mondo let his hand drop from his head as Chihiro's voice sounded from the darkness, echoing around the room. Now that the voice was louder, it was clear that something was off. It was definitely Chihiro's voice but there was almost a weird overlay to it. "Hey, Chihiro? You in here, kid? I don't see ya."

"I'm over here!"

This time Mondo was able to trace the sound but his confusion only grew when his eyes landed on a table hidden away in the corner of the room, a small laptop sitting on it and facing the wall. Walking over to it, he stared at the device, looking around the empty room once more before he shrugged and reached out to turn the laptop around so he could see the screen.

"Ah! Owada-kun! Greetings!"

He just blinked at the screen in dumbfounded surprise because there was Chihiro. Or well, Chihiro's face that is, smiling brightly at him. "Uh...Hey?" It was all he could think to say at first before he shook his head, snapping out of his shock. "Wait, hold on. Why do you look like Chihiro and how do you know my name?"

"Ah!" Said the little program cheerfully. "I am Alter Ego! I was created by my master, Chihiro Fujisaki, and I was given my master's appearance and voice because that is how I was programmed. My master also programmed me to know you and the others that are here! My purpose is to hack into the mainframe of Hope's Peak in order to obtain information that might aid in your escape!"

Huh. Well, that made sense. Chihiro was the Ultimate Programmer after all, even if it was easy to forget since the school they were trapped in didn't have any computers. Well, except this one apparently. Before he could respond though, the little program's face turned into one of surprise, it's eyes going wide and it's mouth forming a small 'o'. It would have been funny how closely it resembled Chihiro's expressions if what it said next didn't cause Mondo to freeze in place.

"Oh!" Its digital face then shifted into one of panicked concern as it continued, "I have been calling out all night in the hopes that someone would hear me! No one has until you, Owada-kun. Ishimaru-kun is in danger!"

Mondo took a quick step towards the screen, his expression suddenly dead serious as he leaned down to get a better look at the small program. "What do you mean he's in danger?! How do you know that?!" If Chihiro had made this thing, then it was probably pretty damn good...which wasn't good right now because that meant that it probably wasn't wrong. He really hoped it was wrong. That Taka was just in his room getting ready, completely fine and about to leave for his own room so they could head to breakfast together. The thought didn't help the pit of dread that was forming in his stomach.

The small program tilted its head in a thoughtful look, its previous distraught expression gone as if it had never been there in the first place. It was jarring but it only served as a reminder that the Chihiro on the screen was just a program. "As I stated before, I was tasked with infiltrating the mainframe of Hope's Peak but I was also given another set of instructions. Master told me to also hack into the camera feeds and to place triggers on each camera to alert me to when there are only two people in a room. It is supposed to be a security measure to prevent murders from happening. One of those triggers went off last night and it was from the camera in Celestia Ludenberg's room. In the room was Celestia Ludenberg and Hifumi Yamada." The little face quickly shifted into one of alarm as it continued, "And they were planning to murder Ishimaru-kun!"

At this point, Mondo was gripping the table that the laptop rested on, his knuckles turning white from anger and barely suppressed panic as he ground out, "Where is he?!" His frame was tense and every nerve in his body was screaming at him to run from the room but he didn't know where too yet so he forced himself to stay put. He fucking knew those two were bad news, what with how heartless Celestia always seemed and how easily Yamada followed her every command. If they hurt him.... God, he should have been keeping a closer eye on his bro, especially in this shitty place. Especially with what happened to Leon and Sayaka... He should have gone and found him earlier, maybe dragged the prefect along with him to the storage room. Then he'd be safe and alive; they could have sorted through some of the boxes, that delighted laugh of his appearing every time he found something even remotely interesting, bright red eyes wide in curiosity....But it was too late now... All he could do was hope he could get to Taka before the other two did. When the program just blinked at him, he spoke up again, his anger seeping into his tone as it raised into a yell. "Where is Kiyotaka Ishimaru right now?!"

Digital Chihiro tilted its head again, a look of concentration on its face before it brightened and answered. "Kiyotaka Ishimaru-kun is currently on the third floor, presumably heading for the Physics lab where the murder was planned to take place. He is currently-"

But Mondo didn't hear the rest as he had already tore out of the room at a dead sprint, thundering down the hall towards the stairs. He was pretty sure he'd never run so fast in his life but he couldn't think of anything else but getting to Taka before-before...

...He didn't want to finish the thought.

When he reached the stairs, he swiftly took three steps at a time. After what felt like forever, he finally reached the third floor and he wasted no time in heading towards the Physics lab. Luckily, he did know where it was since Taka had wanted to check it out just yesterday when Monokuma had unlocked the third floor. The prefect had been hoping to find something they could use to help them but had come up disappointed when they came up empty. Right now though, Mondo was really glad they had searched the room because it meant he knew exactly where he was going.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun Dun DUUNNNNN~~~~~ Will Mondo make it to Taka on time?? Will Taka ever find a textbook even though they are literally trapped in a school??? Find out next time in 'Like Blood in the Snow'!! *some cheesy radio drama music starts playing* (Also, imagine the dun dun duuunn in the Minions' voices from the movie Minions ^^)
> 
> My work here is done! *brushes hands off*  
> ...For now >.>  
> I WILL RETURN!!!! ^0^


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What if Mondo hadn’t snapped that fateful night in the gym? Both Mondo and Chihiro would still be alive. But what if Celestia and Yamada still try to kill Taka and Mondo finds out?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where things really start to get intense. I don’t really know what else to say so as not to spoil it soooo....yup. Umm, I can say that a wild Makoto will appear later in this chapter and I can also say Mondo is going to have a rough time of it. And that’s all I’m going to say for now so please continue!
> 
> «───────«·\𖥸/·»───────»
> 
> ⁿᵒʷ ᵖˡᵃʸⁱⁿᵍ: ʷⁱᵖᵉᵈ ᵒᵘᵗ! ⁻ ᵗʰᵉ ⁿᵉⁱᵍʰᵇᵒʳʰᵒᵒᵈ  
> ⇄ ◃◃ ⅠⅠ ▹▹ ↻  
> ᴠᴏʟᴜᴍᴇ : ▮▮▮▮▮▮▯▯▯
> 
> ✨
> 
> ╭─» //𝚒 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚊 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗  
> ⁃⁃ 𝚜𝚘 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚠𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚖𝚎 𝚍𝚛𝚘𝚠𝚗❞
> 
> «───────«·\𖥸/·»───────»

  
  


Mondo threw the door to the Physics lab open hard enough that the hinges creaked, the force nearly enough to take the door off as it slammed into the wall with a loud crash. The biker crashed into the room not a moment later, frantically looking around and praying to whatever god was out there that he wasn't too late. It was then that he spotted something that made his blood freeze in his veins and his heart stop. A glimpse of white beyond the open door to a large closet in the back of the lab but the part that made him freeze was something else. Someone else, and what that someone was about to do. "TAKA!!!"

Everything seemed to be going in slow motion, even though in reality it was only a few seconds. Kiyotaka with his back to the closet entrance, seemingly studying one of the shelves. Kiyotaka who had jumped in alarm at the noise of the door to the lab slamming open followed by a loud shout of his name in a familiar voice he'd never heard so frantic before. Kiyotaka starting to turn around. Hifumi swinging a large mallet down on his head before he can. 

The doujin artist must have been just about to attack when the biker kicked the door in, panicked at the loud noise and swung anyway even though he had really just condemned himself considering he'd gone through with the heinous act and there was no way to escape now. 

But Mondo wasn't thinking about this, too focused on the prefect who had managed to turn halfway before he was stopped, just enough to see his face. Too focused on Taka as the prefect paled considerably, as pain flickered across his face for the briefest of moments, as his scarlet eyes rolled back, as he collapsed to the ground in a limp pile with a resounding thud that rang in his mind even after the sound had gone. 

And then everything was a blur, his vision almost blacking out as a furious roar rattled around the room, sounding vaguely like a wounded lion. He was moving before he even realized it and the next thing he knew he had Hifumi pinned to the wall, the bloody mallet slipping out of the attacker's hand and falling to the floor with a sharp clatter. "YOU MOTHERFUCKER-! I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!!" All he could see was red as he let out another furious yell and pulled his fist back, letting it connect with the doujin artist's face with a satisfying crunch. 

He could feel the anguish and fury pumping through his veins as he pulled his fist back again with another growling, unintelligible cry of rage. How dare he- how fucking dare he! How dare he try to take away someone so important to him! How dare he try to take away his Kyoudai! How dare he even think of hurting someone who'd only been trying to help everyone since they were trapped in this fucking place! How dare he try to murder the one person here that deserved to live the most, someone who would actually make a difference in this shitty world!  
.  
.  
And...  
He might have succeeded... 

Taka might be...

It was that thought that broke through the rage fogging up his head as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped on him; the gang leader releasing Hifumi who slid down the wall, covering his head with his hands and pleading. He deserved more, deserved more than that for what he'd done and Mondo would have kept going if checking on Taka wasn't far more important right now. He'd deal with Hifumi later, Celestia as well. They'd sure as hell pay for even thinking about hurting his bro, he'd make sure of that. And hopefully...hopefully they hadn't managed to succeed in something far worse. Something far more permanent. 

He moved so fast towards the still unmoving body that when his knees hit the floor with a loud thud to kneel next to Kiyotaka, he felt the force of the contact reverberate all the way up his legs but he ignored the jarring pain. Because right now... He didn't think he'd ever forget the image he was seeing in front of him, no matter how much he'd want to. Taka was sprawled on his stomach on the floor, his head turned to the side with his cheek pressed against the cold tiles. Red was rapidly pooling around his head and the shoulders and back of his once pristinely white uniform were speckled with blood.

The sight of the drops of red on white blurred and a flash of memory hit him; of a bloody nose dripping down off his lip and into the cold snow, dotting it red. Daiya's light-hearted teasing for having gotten it from smashing his face into a sign when he wasn't looking where he was going faintly ringing in his ears. 

Then the memory blurred and changed, although this one was fuzzy and it was slipping from his mind before he could fully grasp it; almost like trying to catch and hold smoke. It was so similar to the first but instead of Daiya's voice, it was Taka's; concerned and scolding and the faint memory of hands gently pressing against his nose to check if it was broken. The memory was so fleeting that he hardly had time to acknowledge it before it was gone entirely once more and he was left with the feeling that he was forgetting something important. 

And then his vision cleared and he was staring at the still body of his best friend. He was scared, scared to reach out. Scared of what he would fine. Of what he wouldn't find. Even so, his hands itched to just touch Taka, to confirm that he was okay; injured sure but something he could fix. Something held him back though. Maybe it was where they were. Or maybe it was because Sayaka's and Leon's deaths were so fresh in his mind. Maybe because here, death was a very real possibility. His voice was hoarse when he finally worked up the nerve to speak.

"T-Taka, bro? Can- Can ya hear me Kyoudai?" There was no response. His heart fucking hurt and he felt like he was going to be sick. He reached out a trembling hand and smoothed it against Taka's neck to rest where his pulse should be, praying to whatever being controlled this fucking ball of spinning earth that Taka was still breathing. That he was still alive. He...He had to be. He couldn't- He couldn't be-

"No no no no No! C'mon, think damnit-" Mondo violently pushed the thought away as he closed his eyes and tried to focus. He desperately tried to remember how Daiya had shown him to check someone's pulse, just in case one of the guys got injured and he'd need to check their heart rate or some shit his brother had said. 

...He'd never had to check for a heartbeat before. 

"C'mon- C'mon- please, please be okay..." It was a tense few moments of him holding his breath and waiting with his shaking fingers pressed against skin. He faintly heard the sound of someone large bumbling out of the room in a panic but it wasn't important, it wasn't nearly as important as the faint beat that finally made itself known against his fingers and Mondo felt like he was going to cry from relief. "Oh thank fucking god- Taka-" He hunched over Taka, carefully rolling the boy over and pulling him gently into his arms, cradling the still form of his best friend. 

He realized a second later that he was crying as tears dripped from his eyes, dotting the pale, limp face beneath him before trailing down the raven's face to mix with the blood. Taka looked...peaceful almost. His usual tense expression relaxed almost as if he was sleeping although the red smeared heavily across his pale skin shattered the image. Fuck he wished he was just sleeping and that those bright red eyes would suddenly open and Taka would smile brightly up at him before asking why they were on the floor.

But that didn't happen. 

His relief at finding a pulse was short lived; Taka still wasn't moving, practically dead weight in his arms, and there was an alarming amount of blood pooled on the ground where he was kneeling. And even more worrying, the head wound itself was seemingly still bleeding at an alarming and fast clip. From what he could tell, his pulse was thready at best too which could mean he didn't have much time...before-

Not wasting another second, he quickly ripped his coat off before tugging his tank top over his head. Shifting Taka gently, he wrapped his coat around the boy, blood stains be damned, before he started to attempt to slow the bleeding down. He cursed to himself as he stared at Taka's bloody face, his eyes wild as he scanned the pale skin smeared with blood. He was panicking and this all felt eerily similar to that one night, the sound of tires screeching and a loud crash filling his ears. He couldn't lose him, he couldn't lose him too. 

Unfortunately, the side of the prefect's face was covered in enough blood that it was hard to tell where it was coming from. "Fuck- Fuck! Where do I- Goddamit Daiya, I wish-" ...wish you were here...His older brother would have known what to do, would have been able to fix this. 

Mondo knew he likely didn't have much time before blood loss kicked in so, after some panicked hesitation, he tried to tie his tank top around Taka's head as best he could. He didn't know how tight it was supposed to be, head injuries were different than other wounds, right? At least he thought he'd heard that somewhere and he damn well didn't want to cause more damage. He glanced around the room, anger surging up in him along with the panic and grief because he didn't know what to do! But then a thought popped into his head, Sakura! He had to get him to Sakura! 

Checking on the white fabric around Taka's forehead once more, he cursed when he noticed that the makeshift bandage was already showing spots of red that had seeped through. But there wasn't anything he could do about that now so, hoping it would be enough, he pushed to his feet with Kiyotaka safely bundled up in his large coat and cradled securely in his arms. 

He couldn't help but look down at his Kyoudai, dipping his head after a moment to press his forehead carefully against Taka's, his eyes slipping closed. He took a deep, ragged breath before he forced out in a whisper; his words firm and desperate, trying to somehow project them into the unconscious boy's mind through conviction alone. "Just-Just hold on, bro. Taka, don't give up- You never have before so don't fucking start now."

Mondo lifted his head and, without any further hesitation, he rushed from the room that had definitely become his least favorite in this hell school and started off in the direction of the first floor in search for Sakura. She was the only person he could think of that might be able to help since she apparently had nurse training or something. She'd taken care of Naegi when he'd decked the kid and she had seemed to know what she was doing. He'd gotten punched in the face enough to know how fixing it up went. 

He didn't have a clue where she was right now though and he didn't have time to search the whole damn school, if he could even call this hell hole that. Every time he'd seen the martial artist though, she always seemed to stay somewhere on the first floor. Usually the cafeteria or the kitchen so that was his best bet on where to find her. He just hoped to hell that Taka held on for that long. 

Luckily, he spotted Makoto before he'd even reached the stairs, the luckster letting out a yell of horror when he spotted them before rushing over. "Oh my god, what happened?!!! Is he okay?!"

Mondo's fast pace didn't falter at the question, the biker tightening his grip on Taka as he started to pound down the stairs with an alarmed Makoto doing his best to keep up. "I don't know!! We need to get 'im to Ogami, he's lost a lot of blood already and- GODDAMNIT WHERE IS SHE?!!!" He was yelling at this point out of fear and panic as he crashed into another empty hallway with no one in sight. 

Makoto skidded around the corner before he jumped in front of Mondo, waving his hands frantically to get him to just stop for a moment, even if the luckster's expression was twisted up like he'd just jumped in front of a truck and was bracing himself. Which was fair considering Mondo was pretty intimidating to begin with but right now the biker's expression was down right murderous. "I know where she is!! She and Hina were in the laundry room doing laundry. I can go get her and meet you at the nurse's office! It'll be faster that way!"

Mondo gritted his teeth at having to trust someone else with something so important before he nodded. There wasn't time, he'd just have to trust Naegi and hope that he was a quick runner. The luckster did seem to care to be fair and he was one of the few out of the others, other than Chihiro, that would go out of his way to hang with his bro. And that meant something. 

He was already turning around and changing directions to head towards the nurse's office as he yelled over his shoulder in a strained voice. "Alright, we'll meet you guys there. Just...Just hurry the fuck up and get yer ass in gear! I'm counting on you Naegi, don't make me fucking regret it!"

Makoto merely gave a quick nod, his expression set into one of serious determination before he took off towards the laundry room as quickly as he could manage. 

Mondo kicked the door to the nurse's office open, trying not to jostle the still boy in his arms before he stepped inside. Usually he would have griped about how lame the pink doors with hearts on them were but right now, he couldn't give a damn. 

Moving over to one of the beds, he carefully settled Kiyotaka's limp frame onto the white sheets; mumbling to the unconscious raven as he did so, his voice shifting into a growl towards the end. "Almost, Kyoudai. Now if Naegi would hurry the fuck up..." 

He bent down and carefully readjusted his coat that was around Taka, anything to just do something with the nervous energy that was still running through him. Plus, it made him feel better seeing the large coat almost shielding Taka, helping to protecting him in his stead. Mondo pulled it more securely around the prefect's thin shoulders but when he went to pull back, he paused for a moment, just staring at the unconscious form of his Kyoudai as his eyes caught on the faint rising and falling of the prefect's chest. After a long moment, he forcefully tore his gaze away and moved to roughly grab one of the stools in the room and drag it over to the side of the bed. 

Mondo let himself drop onto the stool harshly, shoving his face into his hands and hunching forward as he breathed raggedly. Now that he had nothing to do but wait, the little composure he'd managed to keep was rapidly slipping away. He stayed like that for a few minutes, just trying to get control of his breathing before he let his hands drop away, his gaze instantly being drawn back to Taka. 

He looked so....colorless. Taka was usually pretty pale but this...he was nearly as white as the sheets he was lying on. That along with the white of his uniform and the stark contrast of his jet black hair and the black of Mondo's coat that was still wrapped around him made him look so drained of life. The only specks of color were the red of his armband and medal...and the blood. It looked wrong, really fucking wrong. Taka was always so full of life, always full of energy and passion. To see him like this...

Then his ears faintly picked up the sound of footsteps, multiple sets of footsteps and they were quickly getting louder. One set of footsteps was clearly distinct from the others, heavy and shockingly rapid against the school tiles. It didn't take much brain power to guess who that was; Mondo highly doubted that any of the others could run as fast as Sakura could. 

He felt a wave of relief hit him at the sound as his eyes focused back on Kiyotaka. Almost- Almost- Taka just had to hold on a little longer, hopefully Ogami would be able to fix this whole shitty mess. 

Reaching out, he gently gripped Taka's shoulder and gave it a squeeze as he forced out in a shaky voice. "Just-Just a bit more, bro. Ogami's gonna take care of you. You'll be fi-ne" His voice cracked on the word before he cleared his throat and tried again. "-fine...just- just keep breathing for me, alright?"

He kept his hand where it was as his eyes trailed up to where his tanktop was serving as a makeshift bandage around Taka's forehead, red stains clearly visible through the white fabric. Taka would have probably scolded Sakura and whoever else was headed towards them for running in the halls, even if this wasn't really a school. The thought almost made him want to cry again. And punch something, preferably that bastard Yamada. Really really hard. Multiple times. 

Mondo tore his eyes away from Taka when the footsteps finally reached the door, the biker turning his head and there, standing in the doorway like some sort of fucking angel, was Sakura Ogami.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, cliffhangers- you never fail to disappoint. We’ll be seeing a bit more of Sakura and Aoi in the next chapter!
> 
> Also, apparently Taka can still hold Mondo back from being violent even while unconscious XD
> 
> Will Taka be alright? What will be done with the two failed killers? Guess you’ll have to waaaaiittt~
> 
> Won’t be too long, I never sleep >.0 
> 
> «───────«·\𖥸/·»───────»
> 
> Link to song mood for chapter 2: https://youtu.be/F-wtFctaLnk


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What if Mondo hadn’t snapped that fateful night in the gym? Both Mondo and Chihiro would still be alive. But what if Celestia and Yamada still try to kill Taka and Mondo finds out?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo, the chapters seem to be getting considerably longer as they go... XD I actually had more ideas for this chapter but it was getting way to long so I decided to split this chapter into two instead. 
> 
> Things start getting really heavy in chapter 3 and at least chapter 4 since I have some of it written already so be prepared for sads Q^Q
> 
> «───────«·\𖥸/·»───────»
> 
> ᵀʰᵉ ᵈᵃʳᵏᵉʳ ᵗʰᵉ ʷᵉᵃᵗʰᵉʳ, ᵗʰᵉ ᵇᵉᵗᵗᵉʳ ᵗʰᵉ ᵐᵃⁿ⁻ ᴹᴵˢˢᴵᴼ  
> ⇄ ◃◃ ⅠⅠ ▹▹ ↻  
> ᴠᴏʟᴜᴍᴇ : ▮▮▮▮▮▮▯▯▯
> 
> ✨
> 
> ╭─»𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚗𝚝, 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚌𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚍  
> ⁃⁃𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚗 𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝 ❞
> 
> «───────«·\𖥸/·»───────»

  
  


The sight that met Sakura Ogami’s eyes when she came to a stop in the doorway to the nurse’s office was as alarming as it was solemn. Mondo was bare chested other than the sarashi, a white bandage that was used to help absorb blows that she herself also used, wrapped around his abdomen although one glance at the motionless body on the bed gave an answer as to why. The biker was covered in blood, the red substance staining the black of his pants even darker as well as smeared across his chest and arms in various places. Mondo had yet to turn his head towards her, instead seemingly staring down at the raven haired boy lying in the bed and it was then that she noticed that the gang leader was holding the prefect’s shoulder tightly. 

It only took a second before Mondo finally turned to look at her and she caught a glimpse of his face; the sight shocking if not entirely unexpected with how close she knew the two were. Eyeliner horribly smudged and wet tracks down his face, it was clear that he’d been crying. It was a jarring sight for someone who normally looked so gruff and confident, but she knew that feeling all too well. It was the look in his lavender eyes, though, that seemed to snap her into action. Anguish, anger, desperation, panic, and just the tiniest flicker of hope flashing sharply at her. 

Her eyes finally strayed away from the biker and down to Kiyotaka, feeling her heart clench when she took in the still boy. Taka, normally so meticulously in order, looked disheveled; his white uniform wrinkled and there were red stains around the shoulders and chest of his uniform jacket that stood out starkly against the white. Blood was smeared heavily across one side of his face corresponding with the large red stain that was seeping through the white fabric that was tied around his forehead and it took her a moment to realize what the fabric was, her eyes flickering to Mondo briefly before returning to the prefect. 

The raven was clearly unconscious although she noted with relief that his chest was rising and falling, even if the movement was worryingly faint. His skin was alarmingly pale though and, between that fact and the amount of blood she could see, she already knew they could be facing blood loss. She was glad that Mondo had had the foresight to wrap his coat around the smaller boy, blood loss tended to make a patient’s temperature drop rapidly and the large coat would help to keep Taka warm. 

Even so, she couldn’t help but note that the coat practically engulfed Kiyotaka; the collar sticking up past his ears, the end trailing down past his feet by a few inches, and the heavy fabric easily wrapping around him with extra to spare. It made him look incredibly small and it vaguely reminded her of a wounded bird she had tended to once, the thought only making her heart hurt even more. 

All of this caused a pang of pained sympathy and profound sadness in her; the sight of someone fighting to save someone important to them, desperate and angry but clawing and fighting against all odds. It was something she admired, even if it was bittersweet. 

Mondo tore his eyes away from Taka when the incoming thudding finally reached the door, the biker turning his head to find Sakura standing in the doorway; the fighter looking worried as she scanned the room briefly, not the least bit affected by the run to get there. A moment later, Aoi appeared behind Sakura, slightly out of breath and letting out a gasp of shock when she saw both Taka and Mondo. And last up was Makoto, the luckster practically running into Aoi; panting and wheezing like he’d run a marathon. Which was fair since he’d done more running than either of the other two and his ultimate had nothing to do with being athletic. 

Mondo had shot off the stool the moment he saw Sakura although the biker didn’t move away from the bed nor did he let his grip on Taka’s shoulder go. Now that Sakura was actually here, it was as if all his determined, panic fueled focus instantly evaporated. The fear he’d had such a tight chokehold on was rushing to the front in a confusing, biting heat. A small part of his mind reminded him that Sakura might be able to help, that that was the whole reason he’d gotten them both here. But now that the adrenaline of getting to Taka in time was wearing off, fear and the need to protect was quickly overtaking any rational thought, a much larger part of his brain screaming for everyone to just keep away. 

Before he could say anything though, Sakura gave a single nod at his desperate, wild look and quickly made her way over to the side of the bed that Mondo wasn’t on. She stopped though when she heard a low growl, her eyes flickering over to Mondo. The biker looked as if he was about to pounce, that wild desperate look still glinting sharply in his eyes. Raising her hands in a placating gesture, she stepped forward more slowly this time; coming to a stop at the side of the bed and watching Mondo carefully as if he was a spooked animal. Her voice was calm when she spoke. “What happened?”

Mondo watched Sakura warily as she neared, his mind screaming at her to GET AWAY and he was barely suppressing the urge to lunge at her, to block her from the far too painfully vulnerable boy on the bed. But something held him back, just barely. Maybe it was the look in Sakura’s eyes, so very caring; so much like how Taka would often look at him, not quite but similar enough to make him pause. The thought made his chest burn, red eyes flashing into his mind before he forced himself back to the present. 

He tensed even further when she reached out for Taka but his ridged stance relaxed slightly when she seemed to only be checking the prefect’s pulse. Finally pulling his hand away from Taka, he forced himself to reluctantly give Sakura room to work even though he made no move to step away from his spot next to his bro. 

Mondo was silent for a moment, just staring down at Taka’s lifeless face, before he reached up and roughly scrubbed at his face with one hand, taking in a sharp bracing breath as he forced an answer to Sakura’s question. “H- He- I don’t know!! I- I found him in the physics lab, I dunno why he was there! He always gets up super fucking early but he stays in his room ‘till breakfast- he’s smart, he wouldn’t just go wandering ‘round on his own without a reason! They- those bastards must’ve done somethin’ to lure him there, he’s too fucking trusting an’- an’- “ 

His words cut off because it fucking hurt and it was so fucking messed up because Taka goddamn trusted these people! He trusted them to be good enough to not do something as horrible as kill another and all he got in answer to that trust was to be targeted. Out of everyone here, he was the one that Celestia and Yamada decided to target. Maybe it was because he trusted them that they picked him, maybe because they thought it made him fucking weak- easy prey. And he’d fucking let them think that because he hadn’t been there to have his bro’s back; it felt just like what happened to Daiya all over again, he fucked up and was careless and now someone important to him was paying for it and he wanted to scream and apologize and lash out at anything and everything because he didn’t know what else to do! He couldn’t get the fucking feeling of seeing the most important person to him in a lifeless heap beneath his hands out of his head. He hated feeling helpless- He hated- 

Sakura had lifted her head briefly to glance at him when he fell silent, frowning at him in concern before she gently prompted, “Owada. Who are you speaking about? Who is this ‘they’?”

At the question, he suddenly glanced up sharply, eyes glinting and furious. “Fucking Yamada!! That’s fucking who!That fucking sonovabitch tried to- to fucking off him! Celestia was in on it too I think, helped plan it or some shit, m’not sure but I- He- “ His voice broke. “-he fucking smashed him over the head with a goddamn mallet when his back was turned. I- I wasn’t quick enough- I was standing right fucking there but I couldn’t- couldn’t- “ 

Mondo ducked his head, pressing a hand over his face as his voice cracked and he added, his words heavy with guilt. “I...I should have been there... should have been watchin’ his back but I- I let my guard down...” He couldn’t get Taka’s pained expression right before he collapsed out of his head, flashing sharply behind his eyes and it was all his fucking fault, as always. He shook his head, violently shoving the thought down because now was not the time to be thinking about how much of shitty person he was. 

When he spoke again, his voice was icy and sharp with rage. “I knew- I knew those two were trouble. That bastard will do anything she tells ‘im to, even to- to fucking commit murder apparently and he- he couldn’t even face him- fucking coward hitting ‘im from behind!! When I get my hands on him, I’ll fucking kill that motherfucker, I swear to god- ” He practically growled out, his voice low and seething with barely suppressed rage, fear, and shame. His fists were clenched and shaking at his sides with the want to punch something, to lash out, but Sakura’s next question seemed to cut through his rage, the calmness of her voice helping to slightly sooth the flames licking at his insides and raging through him. 

“Where are they now? We do not want them hurting anyone else.” Sakura’s eyes briefly left Taka to glance over at Aoi who was still hovering by the door, likely relieved that the swimmer had followed her now that they knew that a killer, or two, was on the loose. 

“I...don’t know.” Mondo begrudgingly admitted, squaring his shoulders as he added defensively, “I was kinda busy with...with- “ He cut off, closing his eyes as another wave of anger washed over him, burning and biting; the image of Taka’s bright red eyes flashing through his mind before mixing with the blood that had pooled around the boy’s head, so much fucking blood. Taking a sharp breath in, he forced himself to continue even as his voice trembled with rage and bitterness. “-to worry about that fucking bastard. I think he left while I was- was checking on my bro. I wasn’t payin’ attention.”

He let out a breath, opening his eyes as he tried to reign in his anger, his voice still sharp as he added. “Dunno ‘bout Celestia though, she just gave the order I think. She wasn’t in the room.” His expression did turn pensive as Sakura’s words sunk in more. In his panic over Taka, he hadn’t realized that everyone else could be in danger now too and his mind instantly went to Chihiro. The small programmer was likely the most vulnerable out of the others; too timid and small, plus the kid wasn’t a fighter in the slightest. 

Glancing at the door with a conflicted expression, it only took one look at Taka’s painfully still form for him to make up his mind. He couldn’t leave, not until he knew his bro was okay and even then he was loath to leave him unprotected again. He’d already made that mistake and it’d nearly cost him everything. But then his eyes landed on Makoto and he was already moving across the room to clasp his hands on the luckster’s shoulders firmly. “Naegi, ya gotta go warn the others. Get everyone into the cafeteria or something, tell them what’s going on. And if ya see Yamada or Celestia, you fucking run the other way, got it?”

Makoto had been hunched over, hands braced against his knees as he struggled to catch his breath but he straightened in surprise at the heavy grip that suddenly landed on his shoulders. A somewhat disgruntled look crossed the luckster’s face at being asked to run around the school...again, and he looked as if he was going to protest before he met the biker’s eyes. Whatever he saw seemed to stop him in his tracks, his gaze flickering past Mondo and towards Taka before he gave a nod, his expression determined once more even if his voice was breathless. “R-Right. You can count on me.”

Mondo looked relieved, releasing the other boy before giving Makoto a rough slap on the back; the luckster stumbling forward at the force and letting out a small ‘ack’. “Good...get to it then, before anythin’ else happens.”

Makoto, who had recovered from the ‘friendly’ gesture, started to leave the room, turning towards the doors to start looking for the others. But before he could even take a step, he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder once more. “And...make sure Chihiro’s safe for me, will ya? I...can’t be there right now so it’s up to you. Don’t let ‘em out of your sight.” Mondo’s voice sounded from behind him, his tone low and strained with worry and frustration. Makoto gave a nod without turning around, the grip on his shoulder disappearing at the gesture and Makoto rushed from the room without another glance. 

Mondo let out a heavy sigh, staring at the empty doorway for a moment before he turned back around; only to be met with a wave of panicked fear when he noticed the grim look on Sakura’s face, her fingers still pressed to the side of Taka’s neck. He took a few rushed steps forward, in an instant back at the side of the bed and nearly tripping over the stool in his haste; his eyes desperately scanning over Taka as he blurted out, “What?!!! What’s wrong?!!! He’s- He’s still-?!“ He couldn’t bring himself to say it but his eyes caught the still faint movement of Taka’s chest just a second later and he felt the dizzying sense of relief at the sight hit him like a punch to the gut, having to brace himself on the bedside table to keep from slumping to the floor with how strong the feeling was. 

Sakura answered not a moment later, glancing up at Mondo with gentle eyes as she reassured. “Do not worry, he is still breathing. I am merely concerned with his heartbeat. It is...quite irregular and faint. I fear we do not have much time. He has lost far too much blood already. We must act quickly.”

Mondo felt his heart drop into his stomach at that, gripping tightly at the end table that he had one hand pressed against before his demeanor instantly turned deadly serious, his frame tensing as he straightened from his position leaning on the table. There wasn’t time- There wasn’t time for him to be weak. He had to be strong- He had to be strong for Taka’s sake... “What do you need me to do.” 

Sakura had moved on from the raven’s pulse, now lifting Taka’s eyelids to check his pupils and Mondo flinched when Taka didn’t so much as shift at the invasive action. Sakura motioned towards the cabinets in the corner of the room with her head a moment later, still staring intently at the prefect’s unresponsive eyes. “I’ll need bandages, antiseptic, a basin of water, a few rags, and a pen light. I checked the contents of the cabinet only yesterday and it should all be there.”

Mondo had started towards the cabinets before she’d even finished speaking, stomping through the room a bit harsher than was likely necessary before he roughly pulling the doors open, ignoring as they swung back and slammed back into the wall with a loud crack at the force. He hurriedly began to rummage through all the medical junk to find the stuff Sakura needed, relieved that he got in fights enough that he could recognize something like antiseptic at first glance. It took a good deal of effort for him to reign in his panic and fear, desperately trying to focus on what Sakura told him to do, but he managed, just barely to get a fragile grasp on his control, at least temporarily.

Not even a minute later he pulled back from the cabinets, his arms laden with all the specified supplies. He still had to get the water though so he quickly made his way back over to Sakura, dropping all the stuff on the free bed behind the martial artist before he went back over to the cabinets. 

Fetching a bowl from the cupboard, he quickly began filling it with water from the sink in the room, his foot tapping impatiently as he waited for the bowl to fill. It seemed to be filling incredibly slow, too slow and his gaze anxiously flickered back over to Taka as he waited. Sakura had apparently retrieved the pen light from the pile, now checking Taka’s eyes even more throughly. He could see the familiar vibrant red even from across the room, vibrant and yet somehow they looked...painfully, terrifyingly lifeless. He was so distracted that he didn’t notice when the bowl overflowed, cursing and jerking it out of the flow of water before he quickly turned the water off. 

Returning to Sakura with the bowl, he set it carefully down on the bedside table next to her before he returned to hovering next to the bed, this time over Sakura’s shoulder. 

“Thank you.” She simply said, placing the pen light down and moving to start undoing the now heavy, red soaked fabric that was around Taka’s forehead. Sensing Mondo’s nerves from behind her, she continued speaking as a way to distract him. “It was a good idea to use your tanktop as a bandage. He likely would have lost a lot more blood if not for it. I doubt he would have made it this long without your quick thinking.” 

Her words seemed to have the opposite affect though, Mondo feeling his heart stutter as he clenched his fists, suddenly feeling very cold. The thought that he’d been so close to losing him already, that one decision made in panic was the only thing that prevented that reality from being real, it terrified him. 

She’d finished unwinding the fabric after a few tense moments, the task somewhat difficult with how it was sticking because of the blood and he vaguely heard Aoi let out a horrified gasp from somewhere in the room when Sakura pulled the fabric entirely away but he couldn’t focus on the sound, not with what he was seeing. 

Mondo slammed his eyes shut, turning his head away and gritting his teeth at the amount of red that was revealed. He’d already seen it before but it didn’t mean it still didn’t hit just as hard; fear, pain, and anger coiling in his chest like a poisonous viper at seeing Taka of all people like this. It was wrong, it was so fucking wrong! He- He was supposed to protect him! He’d promised and now- now- There was so much blood... He should never have left him alone. He wouldn’t ever again. He wouldn’t fail him, not again. He’d keep this promise even if it fucking kills him. 

He forced his eyes back open, watching as Sakura started to wipe away the blood from the raven’s forehead; finally revealing a nasty, deep gash running from the prefect’s temple before disappearing into his hairline. It felt like someone had punched him in the gut, his breath leaving him at the sight and he felt like he was going to be sick. He didn’t know much about head injuries but even he knew that that was bad. Really bad. He didn’t like the way Sakura’s expression hardened either. 

“He’s- He’s gonna be alright, right?!!! I- he- “ His voice broke off, cracking as his eyes started to water against his will but he didn’t give a damn about acting tough right now. Not with Taka lying limp with his fucking head nearly cracked open, possibly never waking up again. He...might never see those vivid scarlet eyes again, might never hear his bright laughter. Might never see how excited or passionate he got over even little stupid shit, his damn optimism and spirit somehow dragging him out of even his worst slumps. How when he found out about his secret, about his brother, he didn’t hate him like he’d been sure he would. How he had cried, cried for _him_ , and told him it hadn’t been his fault. That he hadn’t killed his own brother. That it had been just a terrible accident. And for some reason, even after all this time believing otherwise, all it took was for those words coming from Taka to make that horrible self-loathing loosen its grip from around his heart. And now...now...

Sakura’s silence spoke volumes and he inhaled sharply as his stomach fell out from under him. The last thread of hope that had been barely holding him together snapped, shattering at the grim silence. The tears finally broke free, the biker’s shoulders heaving in silent sobs as everything he’d been desperately holding back came crashing through. 

Aoi finally stepped further into the room, tears beading in her own eyes as she hesitantly reached out and placed a hand on Mondo’s arm but he violently wrenched it from her grasp, shaking his head desperately as he yelled. “No! No no no- He has to be- He has to be okay!! Tell me he’s going to be okay!!! He’ll wake up- He- fuck- FUCK!” 

And suddenly he was lunging forward, trying to knock Sakura away from Kiyotaka in a blind, wild act of desperation and anger but Sakura merely pivoted and gave a quick jab to his chest. The blow knocked the air from him and he stumbled backwards from the force, coughing and wheezing for air as Aoi just barely managed to catch and steady him. Sakura didn’t even spare him a further glance before she turned back to Kiyotaka but when she spoke, her voice wasn’t cold, just firm. “Stop. I am trying to save his life and if you hinder me, I will not be able to.” 

He didn’t hear her though, a loud angry buzzing filling his mind and ringing painfully in his ears. He could vaguely make out Aoi’s voice speaking worriedly and then Sakura’s adding to the mix of noise but he couldn’t understand- he couldn’t focus because- because all he could see was Kiyotaka. Kiyotaka’s bright red eyes cheerfully locked on him with fierce determination before they blurred like ripples in a pool and then all he could see was those same red eyes as they sparked with pain and fell shut. Kiyotaka lying in the bed- passionate, fiery Kiyotaka nearly as pale and colorless as the sheets. Kiyotaka, always so prim and proper, with a large bloody gash on his forehead, blood smeared over his face and matted in his hair, splattered over his once perfectly white uniform. Kiyotaka who didn’t even twitch as Sakura started to clean out the wound with alcohol. 

His body shook violently- the rage, shame, fear, despair falling out of him with each painful heave, like stones dragging him under the water and he struggled to breath around the suffocating sea of bitter emotions and tears. He vaguely realized that he likely hadn’t cried this hard since the night of Daiya’s accident, when he’d held his dying brother in his arms only to have fucking paramedics force them apart, paramedics that were not even able to save him; his brother dying in a fucking ambulance before it even made it to the hospital and he wasn’t even there. 

At some point, Aoi must have guided him back to the stool he’d vacated earlier because suddenly, without any memory of how he got there, he was sitting down and there was a hand gingerly rubbing his back. He squeezed his eyes shut as the world slowly came back into focus, his frame still shaking harshly around silent sobs. It took awhile more before he could finally understand what Aoi was saying, the swimmer murmuring hushed, meaningless reassurances. He reached up to roughly scrub at his face, smearing his eyeliner even further, the black liquid mixing with the tears. 

The movement made Aoi pause before she asked gently. “...Owada-kun? Can you here me now?”

Mondo just gave a sharp nod, letting his hand fall away from his face as his tear blurred gaze landed on Taka once more, barely able to see more than an outline of his Kyoudai through the tears that he couldn’t seem to get control of. For a moment, that seemed as if that was all she was going to get out of him, but then he mumbled quietly, his voice broken and hoarse, shockingly vulnerable. “I...I can’t- can’t lose him...I can’t...”

Aoi didn’t seem to know what to say to that, the swimmer just biting her lip with tears in her own eyes; continuing to rub Mondo’s back reassuringly as he shuddered. Aoi turned her head back to watch Sakura work, watching Sakura try her best to save the good-natured prefect. 

Sakura had silently continued to clean around the wound, a look of sadness clear on her face. She worked quickly, not wanting Taka to lose anymore blood than could be helped and it only took her a few minutes before she was carefully wrapping fresh bandages around the prefect’s forehead. A silence had fallen over the room, only broken by the biker’s harsh, hitched breaths that seemed almost painfully loud in the deadly quiet space. Checking the bandages one more time to make sure they were thick enough to keep the blood from immediately leaking through, Sakura finally looked up and broke the silence. 

“I’ve done all I can. The rest is up to him, we’ll just have to wait.” Her voice was as calm as ever but it sounded so sympathetic and sad as she gazed at the sight of a man, normally so tough, falling apart from the inside, torn apart by grief and anguish. 

Aoi finally piped up, her voice quiet but hopeful. “I’m sure he’ll be alright, Owada-kun! Ishimaru-kun is really tough, he’ll get through this! I’m sure of it!” Sakura smiled at Aoi’s optimism and kindness before she also added, “I agree. Kiyotaka is very strong. It is rare to find such a spirit as his. If anyone were to pull through such an injury as this, it would be him.”

The biker was silent for a moment longer, the shaking in his shoulders having died down some even though he didn’t look up from where he’d fixed his blurry gaze on Taka’s face. “...I know. I...know he is.”

He fell silent once more, just staring at Taka’s face like a puppy who couldn’t understand why its human wasn’t waking up. Sakura exchanged looks with Aoi for a moment, the swimmer just giving her a helpless look before Sakura nodded at her. Picking up the now red tinted basin of water, Sakura headed over to the sink and refilled it with fresh water. 

This time, though, she set it on the table beside Mondo. The biker worryingly did not respond to the movement, his gaze not wavering from its trance like stare even though it seemed that his tears had stopped at some point while she had been up. Sakura didn’t seem fazed by this though, instead moving to retrieve a fresh rag from the nurse’s cabinets before returning to Mondo and holding it out to him. “I am afraid I can not stay any longer as of right now. I should go look for Hifumi and Celestia to ensure they do not cause more harm. As such, would you mind wiping the rest of the blood off his face? I hadn’t focused on it earlier as I felt the wound itself was more pressing. I doubt Kiyotaka would appreciate waking up to being in such a state though.” 

It was partly a lie, for one she wasn’t too worried about anyone else getting injured, what with Makoto rounding everyone up. And secondly...she couldn’t say for sure if Kiyotaka would ever wake up, not with such a severe head injury. He could, but he also could not and she hated giving false hope. But at the same time, she could also see that Mondo needed it. Needed something to cling to, something to do to feel useful. 

Mondo had slowly turned his head towards her at the request, staring blankly at the offered rag for a moment before a spark of life seemed to return to his hopeless, despairing gaze. He reached out and took the rag, just holding it in his hand for a moment and staring at it before he mumbled back, “I- Yeah, He really wouldn’t...” Trailing off, he glanced around, seemingly just now noticing the basin of water behind him before he nodded, his expression slowly shifting into something more resembling his usual self. “Yeah- Yeah, I can do that. Go. But- “ The anger returned so quickly to his face it was shocking, his words dipping into a growl, “If ya find him, I want first dibs at ‘im.”

Sakura merely nodded, relieved to see some fight returning to him, even if it was fueled by revenge. She turned to Aoi, giving the swimmer an apologetic smile. “Are you alright staying here?” Sakura motioned her head over to Mondo, the biker having turned his back to them and Aoi’s face lit up in understanding as she nodded. “Yes! I’ll be fine! Go get them Sakura, show them who’s boss for hurting our Ishimaru-kun!!”

Sakura smiles gently at her, glad that Aoi would be staying behind with Mondo. She was honestly worried about his mental state and hopefully Aoi’s optimism might help. It was something at least and, with a final nod of farewell, she left the room to start combing the school for the two failed blackened. 

Aoi let out a sigh as she watched Sakura go before she turned to glance back at the bed, watching as Mondo started to wring out the rag; presumably only just starting since Taka’s face didn’t look any better than before. She grimaced and looked away, not wanting to linger on the blood too much. After a few seconds she started walking back over to them before she gently perched on the edge of Taka’s bed, careful to not accidentally sit on him. 

Mondo had just finished wringing out the rag and was about to lean forward when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye, turning his head only to tense when he spotted Aoi sitting down on the bed beside Taka’s legs. They stared at each other for a moment, a silent battle of wills and testing of intentions before Mondo backed down, letting out a huff. Aoi smiled at the small victory, silently watching as Mondo started to lean forward over the bed slightly. 

Mondo hesitated a moment, the rag hovering over Taka’s still face before he gingerly closed the distance and started to gently wipe at the blood that was smeared and caked down the side of his face. It honestly did feel somewhat good, ridding his Kyoudai of the horrible red stuff, not that he was a stranger to blood. It usually didn’t bother him but...not on Kiyotaka- not when it was his Kyoudai’s blood. 

There was something calming about being this close to him though. It felt...strange, like a lot of things did when it came to the prefect but he’d just chalked it up to Kiyotaka being so damn unique. He missed his eyes- missed looking into them, even though he’d literally seen them just yesterday. Even so, it felt like a lifetime ago. 

He was torn from his sad, stinging thoughts by the feeling of eyes burning into him and he let out a sigh as he leaned back to dip the rag in the bowl again. “Ya just gonna sit there and stare the whole time or what?” 

There was a pause although he didn’t look up as he focused of wringing out the rag once more but then Aoi was speaking, her voice sad. “You know, I really do care. About both of you really. I know it’s hard to believe since we’re trapped in this weird place with those...horrible rules and we only met like, a week ago and all, but I do.”

Mondo just gave a grunt as he leaned back over Taka once more but Aoi took that as a sign to continue as she started speaking once more. “I know you’re all tough and scary and all, but I think you’re a good guy under it all. You must be for Ishimaru-kun to speak so highly of you!”

That got his attention, Mondo pausing and pulling the rag back from Taka’s face although he didn’t look away from the raven as he mumbled back, “He...He does?”

Aoi grinned brightly, glad that the subject had changed to something more cheerful. “Of course he does! He’s always talking about you. About how honorable and kind you are. And how brave! He’s told me a few times that he’s honored to be your, ah, what was it- “ She broke off for a moment, scrunching up her face and sticking her tongue out in thought before she clapped her hands, “Kyoudai! He’s told me he’s honored to be your Kyoudai. It’s all rather sweet really!”

Mondo couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips at that even as his face warmed slightly at the words, still staring down at Taka’s face. “Fucking dork.”

Aoi giggled. “Yes! But a lovable one!” And Mondo couldn’t really argue with that. After a moment of silence had passed where Mondo had resumed his task, now gently wiping away at Taka’s cheek; Aoi spoke up again. “I really am fond of him you know. He’s so kind, even before he knew any of us. Always offering to help. He even made tea for Sakura and I our second night here and it was damn good, this boy really knows how to make tea! I was feeling really anxious a few days ago too and Sakura was off at the gym training, but I ran into Ishimaru-kun in the hallway and I guess I was being really obvious because he asked if there was anything he could do to- “ She made air quotes even though Mondo couldn’t see her, “‘help me feel more at ease’” 

She laughed lightly, her own eyes now on Taka as well as she spoke. “So I told him I’d reaaally like it if I could find some donuts because those always make me feel better and suddenly he went super serious like I’d asked him to, I dunno, swim in my place for regionals or something and the next thing I know, he’s dragging me along determinedly and declaring that he won’t rest until he finds me donuts. And he did, practically upended the whole kitchen in the process but he found them in the very back of the kitchen pantry.” She let out another laugh, this time Mondo chuckling along with her but her laughter faded as she added more quietly, gazing sadly down at the unmoving prefect. “He...He looked so happy when he gave them to me...”

Mondo had paused once more, his face still turned away from her but she must have noticed because a second later she was blurting out, “Ah, sorry! I didn’t meant to bring down the mood! I...I was trying to cheer you up...”

Clearing his throat, Mondo shook his head and his hand continued. “N-No, ’s fine. That’s...definitely my bro for you.” He didn’t say anything more and Aoi seemed to accept that as an end to their conversation, the swimmer also falling silent. 

The story had stung though, filing his chest with a bittersweet feeling because it really was so like his bro- so damn kind, so determined to see others happy and living their best lives. Practically living for just that purpose. 

They fell into a somewhat comfortable silence as Mondo worked and it didn’t take too much longer before he’d wiped away the last bit of blood off Taka’s face. He grimaced as he let the now red rag plop down into the equally red filled bowl, half wanting to throw the fucking thing across the room at this point just to get it out of his sight. 

Mondo frowned as his eyes lingered on the blood matted in Taka’s hair but he was scared to touch so close to the bandages so he reluctantly decided to leave that part be. He did feel better now, Taka looking just slightly more okay and normal; looking more like he was just sleeping, the tight feeling around his heart lessening ever so slightly as his eyes traced over the raven’s expressionless but now clean face. 

Leaning forward, he unthinkingly reached out towards Kiyotaka’s face, gently rubbing a thumb under one of his closed eyes. He half-expected, half-hoped that Taka’s eyes would flutter open at the touch; he could so clearly picture it in his head that it almost felt real. He closed his own eyes for a moment, just breathing and a part of him felt that if he just imagined it hard enough, that when he opened his eyes he’d be met with bright red ones staring back.  
.  
.  
.  
But when he forced his eyes back open, Taka’s face hadn’t changed and that tight feeling was back just as strong as before, coiling around his heart and filling his chest with stones. He let out a breath, pulling his hand away from Taka’s face and instead letting his head fall to gently rest against the raven’s forehead, careful to avoid the injured side. 

He let his eyes slip shut as he breathed in, the coppery scent of blood strong this close up but under it all, he could faintly pick up something else; the warm scent of freshly ironed clothes, of crisp paper, and then something else he couldn’t quite place. Something that just felt like...Kiyotaka. For some reason, the smell felt incredibly familiar; like a long lost scent he’d almost forgotten but couldn’t quite remember. It was...comforting. Even now, with all that had happened, his heart was slowly calming for the first time since that little laptop had told him Taka was in trouble in the first place; the rabid beats slowing to dull thumps as he kept breathing in that comforting, oh so familiar smell. 

In the dark space behind his closed eyelids, he could almost pretend that everything was alright. That Kiyotaka had just exhausted himself and had fallen asleep, perfectly fine and safe. Almost. He could pretend, but he knew it wasn’t true. Even so, he was finding it easier to ignore the bitterness hanging over him, being so close to his Kyoudai; the strangely familiar scent enveloping him, making it easier to sink down and for his thoughts to haze over. 

He vaguely knew that he should be embarrassed, acting so openly when Aoi was literally sitting right there watching him. But he just couldn’t bring himself to care right now. 

He was pulled from his thoughts by footsteps faintly coming down the hall. Multiple footsteps so it couldn’t just be Sakura again. He reluctantly lifted his head and glanced at Aoi who just shrugged unhelpfully, seemingly not commenting on what had just happened even though there was a small, soft smile on her face. 

Mondo ignored that though, turning his head and giving the door a wary glance. He groaned lightly as the steps got louder, clearly heading their way. Ugh, he couldn’t be fucked to deal with anymore people right now. Not after today. So who the fuck was it now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAAAAA MONDO LOVE-  
> I’M SORRY >w<  
>  _wAiLs and tackle hugs him_  
> ...  
> ....  
> ...  
> ..  
> .  
> This...was very hard to write tbh and I honestly had to stop quite a few times because I was getting too sad >_< And the next chapter will also be pretty despairing, at least the first half since I already have that vaguely detailed out and written in parts. I did find it funny that, without even meaning too, I had somehow stumbled into writing a very wholesome conversation between Mondo and Aoi and I literally only noticed mid-way through writing it XD I’m happy that the end of this chapter ended on a lighter note though, it’ll be a nice break before the next chapter crashes in with more s a d-
> 
> Also, has anyone picked up on the hints of m e m o r i e s ? ? Hmmm-
> 
> But annnyway~ Will Taka wake up? Who are the people heading down the hallway towards them?? Will we hear more about Aoi’s love of donuts???
> 
> Find out next time! Bye!  
>  _flees_
> 
> «───────«·\𖥸/·»───────»
> 
> Link to song mood for chapter 3: https://youtu.be/QWQk49xDIVw


End file.
